 
The changing of years. I love it. I’m one of those crazies who loves all the things that mark new beginnings. Heck, I even love Mondays… I mean, you can’t beat a fresh start every single week!
So a new year? Bring it on. This year especially.
I’ve been sitting here a full 20 minutes typing and deleting, typing and deleting. Last year was rough. I weaned my last baby and with that triggered some late-onset postpartum depression. Spring and summer are a blur, we did fun things, but I felt so disconnected from the life that was happening all around me. And by the time the holidays hit, even though I was feeling better, I was playing catch up to the 8 billion things that had fallen behind thanks to that dark season. And its hard to play catch up amidst the busiest work season of the year for a photographer, and well.. the normal holiday craziness!
But we made it! Hello 2017! Goodbye 2016!
So where am I at right now? My desk, writing. HA. I make myself giggle guys.
But really. I’m still married to this really awesome guy I’ve known for what I can now say is more than half my life! We adore these crazy, stubborn, giggly, ACTIVE girls who are 3 (and almost a half) and 20 months. They are soooo sweet, and they are sooooo good at pushing all of our buttons. Life lessons all around, we can just leave it at that. ;)
Aaron rides a lot of bikes, I’m training for another triathlon. Abbi is in preschool. Ella knows so many words. We love the outdoors. We all spend a bunch of time with our church family. I co-coordinate for MOPS, Aaron is a youth boys small group leader. Work for both of us (it’s weird… it only took me 5 years to finally be comfortable calling my photography business “work” which it definitely is, but I still LOVE it!). It’s a full life. Busy, but in the best possible way.
The next logical question… where are we going? (insert me resisting telling another lame joke about going to bed…)
As a family? Much in the same direction. More time outdoors, more family adventures in the land cruiser (see the soon-to-be-more-developed #thecruisernamedpearl), more time with our framily, more time in pursuit of the things that really matter.
For me? I’m really looking forward to the things this year is going to hold. Enter the meat of this post (and why it’s called Hello 30):
I turned 30 a couple of months ago! And was/am super excited to reach the next decade. But much of my enthusiasm got lost in the holiday shuffle.
I’M A GROWN UP NOW PEOPLE!
There… enthusiasm! :D
And realistically, I know I’ve been a grown up for a while. You can’t really deny it when you own a house, are married, have two kids, a dog, a business… the whole deal. But there is something that I feel like I’ve been arriving at anyway, that feels appropriate to be feeling in my 30th year of existence. Some sense of responsibility. Of owning up to where I’m at, and where I want to get to. I still have SO much life to live. 30 is young. I used to think it was old… like when i was 12, but man was I wrong. I feel like I’m just coming in to my own, figuring out who I am… it’s a good thing!
Which sorta brings me to my goals for the year. Ok, so that wasn’t a good segue, but deal with it.
My word for this year is SEEK. Seek God, seek life, seek adventure, seek connections and relationships, seek whole (mind/body/soul) healthy living, seek intention in actions.
This year is not going to pass me by. I’m going to LIVE it. I’m going to SEEK it. It is a year of action. It is a year of intentional restoration, not mindless laziness.
There are some big things on the horizon and I don’t want them to sneak up on me, I want to be prepared. This, my 30th year (plus a couple of months), will be my year!
Seek and Intention: when I think of New Years resolutions, that about covers it.
Don’t worry though… if you thought I didn’t make a list, you don’t know me very well. :P
I didn’t make firmer New Years resolutions because I had already made a “30 Things While I’m 30” list. And because, as I said, my enthusiasm for 30 got lost in the holiday shuffle, I figured I’d just keep SEEKING that list with INTENTION. So in no particular order and with notes in parentheses both for you and for me, here’s my list…
30 Things While I’m 30
- FLOSS every. damn. day. (or every other at least if we’re being realistic)
- read 30 books
- do 30 random acts of kindness
- blog weekly on 2create and Snapdragon
- consistent work routine that doesn’t leave editing until last minute
- consistent morning and evening routine (take care of your mind and skin better!)
- good big-camera photos of my kids regularly
- eat intentionally
- write 30 letters
- apply for seminary (this is THE big one, I don’t talk a ton about my Jesus loving heart on this blog, but if this doesn’t clue you in I’m not sure what will. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask!)
- do something active everyday (you bought yoga and zumba dvds for a reason… the girls would love to join in!)
- go on a backpacking trip
- do a triathlon
- lose 30+ pounds
- give everything in our house a home
- get up with Aaron in the morning
- do one hard thing every day (the task you’ve been putting off, the conversation you’ve been avoiding, the effort you’ve been slacking on)
- print and hang more photos
- surprise somebody with a “just because” gift every month
- spend more time outdoors
- do lunch and a movie by myself
- say no or delegate more (don’t spread yourself too thin!)
- read more stories with the girls
- journal weekly at a minimum
- do something everyday that adds to a WHOLE (mind/body/soul whole) HEALTHY LIFE
- finish a project you started a while ago
- do something generous with snapdragon income
- stick to your budget… be a grown up dammit
- family dinners at the table, no phones, at least weekly
- use social media intentionally (read: no mindless scrolling)
You’ll see there is a range of small to big (hello flossing vs. seminary), there are one time tasks and habits I want to form. There were no rules when I made this list, just a lot of things I’ve been mulling over for a long time. Things that seem appropriate for a year of stepping one step closer to the person I want to be.
And I think that about sums it up! Complete with recent photos, including my beautiful family and this GORGEOUS double rainbow we saw driving back from our latest snow adventure… the photo does not do its brilliance justice!
Cheers to seeking everything 2017 has in store for us!
Sam
Is your 2017 off to a good start? I hope so! And yes, you read that title correctly. I’m focusing on setting myself up for a very different 2018 during this year.
Sneaky changes over the last couple years had me feeling that my sense of fun and my willpower went on a vacation without me. This is Gail speaking, mom to Sam who is my blog partner, creative buddy, and oldest of my three kids; grandma to her children Abbi and Ella; bogged-down creative person, and on-the-upswing-now sufferer of chronic depression.
Story. Stick with me; there’s a happy ending :)
Chronic depression really is a sneaky thing. A person can often be “on”, feel “on” when amongst a group but underneath that and when alone, it is a different story. Lack of physical energy. A “just don’t care enough” mentality about pretty much everything in spite of often having great plans to conquer … well, everything. I manifest this in a gigantically successful Tune Out technique: take a nap, read a book, games on computer, facebook (because that’s just thinking and typing, not requiring the changing out of pajamas. I’m great at cheering *you* on and googling stuff.) A few things break through and energize me — getting together with Abbi and Ella being my favorite frequent one.
To enrich my world, in 2017 I will read some books that are not pop fiction!
I know I live my life on cycles of up and down. I have had to balance my energy since my 20s, not overdoing it when riding the top of a wave in order to conserve the ability to keep going when in the bottom part of the shorter term energy cycles. Most of this is from the fibromyalgia I suffer from, but part is the chronic depression — longer cycles, and there’s probably a part that’s “just me” and/or normal. When Sam and I started this blog, I can see that I was at the top of a less-depressed cycle, and had been for quite a while. Having gotten used to it — taking it for granted — the downswing snuck up and sucked me down big time. I’ve spent a lot of time over the past 18 or so months working hard at Tuning Out in the ways listed above. And know what?
I AM BORED.
Yay!!! Three cheers! Woohoo!
An interesting doctor appointment mid-autumn for a medicine switch, where I was a firm and repetitive advocate for my need to sleep well every night, has begun to have payoffs. #1 payoff being Sleep! Every night. Aaaaah, waking up and not feeling the need to take a nap all day long. Going to bed, and feeling sleepiness that transforms to sleeping through until morning. I have energy! I feel hope in being able to get on with long-undone tasks! My innate optimism isn’t reduced to just a tiny core part of me, but is slowly repermeating my thinking.
Remember this Studio redo I was working on? Yeah, not done, and I haven’t done much creating in all that time, either. Most of the time I didn’t even have the urge. But now, not only am I noticing that spark of creativity and nurturing it into a flame, I have plans and a timeline in place for finishing that redo along with a few other big projects and to-do list items that are very overdue. And I can see beyond the difficult tasks to the payoffs. I can see beyond the work of 2017 and into the reward of 2018.
Just after that appointment with my doctor, God (the Universe, whatever higher power you want to attribute serendipitous things to) threw a few opportunities my way and I accepted.
The first: Susannah Conway’s “Find Your Word” series of emails. Five emails, a clear process, worksheets even. I now have a word of the year that is meaningful, inspiring, and exactly right.
The second: the Rituals For Living Dreambook + Planner from Dragontree. Oh yeah. Big time life changes can be dreamed of, organized, and made into reality with this system! I’m both terrified in a good way, and excited to have all aspects of ME marching in the same direction toward a future that *I* dreamed up, dream of, have written down with the help of questions and exercises in the Dreambook.
(c) The Dragontree, used with permission
This year, 2017, is all about “Shed” as a command word. Shed the too-much-stuff that’s been hanging around, increasing and getting messier and being a huge black cloud on my horizon. Actually, that cloud has been parked over the top of my head for a while.
Next, Shed some weight, not by dieting per se, but by eating the way I want to always eat — implementing my dream of being a healthy person by feeding myself properly. And not just for a day or a week, or even a couple months at a time; but always. Because: not a “diet.”
Which brings us to: Shed old habits, some new, some old, that are not serving me — sitting on the couch too much (and as a catch phrase for all the other Tune Out list items); eating poorly because the “will today make any difference?” attitude was entrenched; not valuing my own goals and plans enough, and more.
Shedding stale dreams also has to happen. It’s kind of FREAKING ME OUT, but being honest with myself I can admit in my heart and head that there is no way I can ever master every creative thing I want to do in the years remaining to me. Prioritizing and cutting the bottom of that list away will free my mind to celebrate and anticipate the accomplishments, projects, and skills I plan to develop over the next 10 years (written!) and beyond (still dreaming.)
My major goals this year are from two categories, Accomplishments That End, and New Habits in Place. I will finish up quickly with my list, a thank you for sticking through to the end of this … what should it be called? statement of self? statement of self! … and a wish for you to have an amazing year!
- Declutter (muck out) and make functional three main areas of my house: garage, studio, and the miscellaneous dumping spot of master bedroom suite.
- Blogging regularly, meaning at least once a week, to reinstill my habit of creating.
- Read 12 books that aren’t pop fiction off of the Modern Mrs. Darcy 2017 Reading Challenge categories.
- Eating well and wisely day after day to become the healthier person I really want to be.
- Exercise using an increasing plan with a goal marker of easily, safely, walking a 5K late this summer or in the fall.
- Stick with daily planner use, and with weekly, monthly, quarterly planning sessions as described in the RFL Dreambook. Acronym SNIP: Stick Nose In Planner.
- Begin learning Italian in preparation for a tour.
In summary, SHED what doesn’t serve, and find out what that dreamed-of future is like in reality.
Look out 2018, here I come!
Gail
Autumn, when you can feel the warmth of the sun through your clothing, but the smallest breeze chills your skin. Tan lines are fading, winter squashes and apples appear at the produce markets, and some mornings start when the sky is still as dark as the coffee you pour. I’m more likely to notice the shorter days from the “What? It’s dark before dinner?” end of the day, just sayin’.
At one of our local produce markets with my daughter Becca, here on a visit from the hot southwest — she was freezing; I was loving the high 70s — I noticed the most gorgeous Mission figs. Baskets of perfectly ripe, uniform size, almost blemish free velvety black-purple skin… I could taste their mild sweetness and feel those microscopic crunchy seeds just looking at them.
Once back home with a basket of those irresistable figs, I did some googling to find just the right recipe. As soon as I saw cornmeal as an ingredient, and then mascarpone, I was captivated with this recipe on the epicurious.com website. It would have taken a lot to make me abandon it for another.
From 2003, which is a pretty old recipe in the foodie world, it still seemed pretty contemporary to me. For one thing, mascarpone just can’t go out of style. Like a soft cream cheese without the tang or the salt, it is the perfect creamy and smooth blank canvas. Flavored with a spoonful of fluffy grated of lemon zest (I used less than the recipe; it’s a hubby thing) and held by a hearty and savory cornmeal blend crust, the fresh figs still dominated the eating experience.
I would make this again in a heartbeat. Over and over until the jar of Fig and Caramel Preserves I used was emptied.
And it was just as delicious for breakfast as it was for dessert.
On to the recipe adaptations. I already mentioned that I reduced the amount of finely grated lemon zest I used because my husband is NOT a fan. But even the reduced amount flavored the mascarpone well. As for the salt and unsalted butter combo, if you’re happy with the saltiness of your salted butter, just use it.
Also, do not substitute dried rosemary for the fresh; this is one of those times when it just cannot be done. Leave it out altogether if you have to, but why aren’t you growing an evergreen rosemary bush in your garden somewhere? Their long sprigs make the best scented filler in a vase of flowers as well as being perfect for winter stews and summer marinades, even skewers! They are so easy to care for, too.
As for the figs, I think any type of fresh fig would be fantastic on this tart. I only wish I had the foresight to pick up two baskets of these beautiful little Mission figs so I could have covered the whole tart with a wall-to-wall carpet of fig slices! As it was, my scant pound was enough to make do with but the suggested 1.5 pounds would be better.
The recipe called for a mixture of currant jelly and honey to be melted and brushed over the figs. Well. No currant jelly, not wanting to run to the store, and with little patience for brushing a coating over delicate fruit, I searched the frig (we should call it the condiment cabinet, honestly!) and came up with a jar of fig and caramel preserves. Melted with some honey and vanilla, it was a tasty but not overwhelming accent.
Fresh Fig Tart with Cornmeal Crust 2016-09-27 02:33:13 Serves 8 A savory cornmeal crust and a silky mascarpone filling make are perfect with fresh figs. - 1 cup flour
- 1 cup finely ground cornmeal (should be about the same as flour; check the bulk bins)
- 1 Tbsp. sugar
- 1/2 cup butter (4 oz, 1 stick)
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 4 - 5 Tbsp. ice water
- 8 oz mascarpone cheese
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 to 1 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest (use a fine microplane grater)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 lbs fresh figs, perfectly ripe
- Choose either glaze or sauce: glaze -- 2 Tbsp red currant or apple jelly + 1 Tbsp honey; sauce -- 4 Tbsp. fig preserves + 2 Tbsp honey + 1/8 tsp vanilla
- Pulse in food processor to mix the flour, cornmeal, and sugar. Add the butter in chunks and rosemary; pulse until coarse meal with the visible butter chunks the sizes from rice to peas. Pour 4 Tbsp ice water over; pulse until just combined. Add 1/2 Tbsp more water at a time only as needed. The mixture should *just* hold together when squeezed.
- Press evenly into a 1" deep, 10" round (or 11" x 8" rectangle) tart pan with a removable base. Press a layer up the sides all the way to the top edge. Chill 30 minutes.
- Bake the chilled crust at 400F for 25-30 minutes. Set pan on rack to cool.
- Mix all ingredients. Can be done a day ahead; refrigerate until ready to assemble.
- Slice figs. Heat glaze or sauce ingredients in microwave or on stove, stirring frequently, just until runny.
- Remove tart pan ring from crust. Use a thin flexible spatula or long knife to loosen crust from base. Slide crust onto serving platter.
- Spread filling evenly in crust. If using sauce, drizzle in an artistic way over the filling. Arrange sliced figs over filling. If using glaze, brush gently over figs.
- Garnish with a sprig of rosemary if desired.
- Cut into wedges to serve.
- Crust and filling can be made up to a day ahead. Crust will soften after being filled, so the tart should be assembled within an hour of serving.
- Fresh figs are squishy when ripe, far beyond what you look for in an avocado.
By Gail @ 2Create in Color
Adapted from July 2003 Gourmet magazine
2Create in Color https://www.2createincolor.com/
Run out and find yourself some fresh figs! If your farmer’s market still has any rosemary plants, pick up one of those, too. It will be happy where it can bask in the south sun. Then make yourself this tart and do a little basking yourself on the next sunny day.
Happy Autumn!
Gail
It’s September first! To me that means fall. I don’t care that the first day of fall isn’t until the 22nd. I’m ready!
This week means last summer vacation, rainy weather in the forecast, cooler temps, first week of school… wait… what?! Yep. I have a pre-schooler now. We are officially in back to school mode. Thanks to Daniel Tiger, I think Abbi and I are on equal excitement levels about preschool… YAY! We had her teacher meet and greet yesterday and she was SO sad that I wasn’t leaving her there to have school. I love it, can’t believe what a little person she is now… three years old, potty trained, talking in full sentences, and lots of ideas of her own!
Anyway. Fall for me means new routines too. New workout schedule, new work schedule, new (pre)school schedule, new BLOG schedule!
And so I don’t burn myself out before I even get started again… let’s talk recipes. That’s always a good blogging start! Earlier this week I made a Smoky Bacon and Blue Potato Salad and it was AMAZING! I of course took from a few recipes and added some ideas of my own. So if you are looking for a new side dish recipe (Labor Day potluck anyone?), try this!
Smoky Bacon & Blue Potato Salad 2016-09-01 01:32:55 Title says it all!
Recipe makes enough for a crowd, cut it all in half for a family sized side... probably still with some leftovers. :) - 5 lbs red potatoes, cut into the size pieces you want to eat
- 10 slices cooked bacon (we smoked it, but cook however you like)
- 1 cup mayo
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup (maybe a little more, up to half a cup) bbq sauce
- 1/4 mustard
- a little glug of apple cider vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 4 ribs of celery, sliced
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1-2 tbsp tarragon, chopped
- 1-2 tbsp dill, chopped
- 1-2 cups smoked blue cheese (we used closer to two cups... we love that blue cheese flavor!)
- Cook potatoes. We smoked ours at about 250 for a few hours until tender, occasionally misting with water. Don't have a smoker? Boil those suckers, the traditional method. ;) Let cool.
- Cook bacon until crisp and cut into pieces.
- In a big bowl combine mayo, sour cream, bbq sauce, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper.
- Fold in potatoes, bacon, green onions, celery, parsley, tarragon, dill, and blue cheese!
- Can be served immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve!
By Sam @2CreateInColor 2Create in Color https://www.2createincolor.com/
So with that, I leave you. Have a great Labor Day Weekend!
Sam
Just like Sam, my blog-partner, I also have been to a paint and sip event recently. And after painting this vase of flowers, I ventured further and went to a less-structured painting event you can see in the second half of this post.
My son and his girlfriend treated both of us moms to a fun Mother’s Day including brunch at Skillet and a paint and sip by Canvas! in Seattle (link is to our event. Robert and Rachel are the second photo!) Since I was just getting over a bad cold and don’t do alcohol anyway, I enjoyed sipping on my nice hot tea while following the instructions to create a Van-Gogh-inspired bouquet of flowers.
Unlike Sam in our previous post, I did not snap any meaningful pics of my painting as I went so I am filling my post with close ups of my favorite parts! Haha! I really had fun layering and mixing and brushing on the backgrounds and the vase.
My son says, a few minutes in, “This is what I got an art degree for.” Ya never know, bud! Maybe one day you’ll be leading a room full of tipsy adults through a painting ;)
It was fun to see how each of us interpreted the instructions (admirably!) and then somewhat shocking to see how some people in the rest of the room carried them out. I am Quite Happy with my painting, especially the vase! It was also a great day Ubering around the city together and talking up a storm.
A couple weeks later, an artist friend of mine Facebook-invited me to a 6-hour painting party called “Fish and a Dish.” Curious, I went researching. A fun and encouraging artist named Brenda Boles holds a monthly painting party where you can choose from a variety of pre-sketched canvases of the month’s focus. Everyone also brings a treat of some sort to share, potluck-style. Hence, the fish and a dish title for June’s event.
Thank you for the invite, Sandi! I’m so very glad I had this experience :)
I had my choice of about a dozen different fishes on different sized canvases, but this messy, highly textured angel fish really caught my attention.
I was quite intimidated at first, but each time I got done with one step, I asked her to tell me what to do next. When I started applying the crazy, messy, green paint streaks and spatters though, I was off and running! After all … acrylics. You can easily pull off do-overs if needed heh heh. I love love love the spatters.
The photocopy of the original painting I was using showed a blue-toned fish with no background (and a significantly less amount of the fun stuff.) So you see that I personalized it by PAINTING IT GREEN! If you’ve seen me on facebook, you know that my profile picture remains a neon sign saying “paint it green!” I love to paint things green :)
If you get a chance to paint and sip with friends, I encourage you to give it a try!
Happy painting (and sipping),
Gail
« Previous
Next »
|
.jpg)
Diane Johnston - Sam, I have so much admiration for you (and your mom) heading into this new year with such a sense of purpose and determination to have a wonderful year of accomplishment and adventure. God bless you with His help to do all that you want to do on that list.
I am 75 and wish I had learned to set goals when I was your age. I am still so hesitant to set goals because of the fear of failure. My hubby and I have some really big challenges for this year. We have to trust God to guide us and help us make major changes. I will be praying your you…especially for that goal of attending seminary.
Diane01.07.2017 – 12:38pm
admin - Thank you Diane! Fear is a big stumbling block for me too, I actually got “faith over fear” tattooed on my arm last year as a reminder that we were never meant to be perfect… Failure is just part of this world, and the beauty of God’s perfect plan keeps me striving for the things I’ve come to believe He wants from me. Thanks for rooting for me and Mom. I’ll be praying for peace and assurance in your transitions this year. :) -Sam01.07.2017 – 1:00pm
A Year in a Week » 2Create in Color - […] by a couple of friends, my embracing 30 project, and mom’s and my decision to do a yarn post early on this year I decided to dive into a […]02.12.2017 – 6:14pm